


Nar Shaddaa Rules

by thegreatandpowerfultoaster



Category: Star Wars Legends: Knights of the Old Republic, Star Wars Legends: Knights of the Old Republic II: The Sith Lords
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-15
Updated: 2018-07-15
Packaged: 2019-06-11 03:02:11
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 937
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15306006
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thegreatandpowerfultoaster/pseuds/thegreatandpowerfultoaster
Summary: "Nothings better than having you around,” she smiles upward, still afraid to look at him and find that her eyes were drawn to more than just his eyes. “Really, though.”





	Nar Shaddaa Rules

Dxun is hot, and humid and every bit as miserable as she remembers. After the entire mess that just occurred, Mara is ready to flip on the Hawk’s sub par cooling system and lay in the middle of the engine room where the main event is. 

The ship is quiet, being that it’s getting late now and it’s been a long day. She could guess where everyone was, or better yet, reach out through the Force and sense them, but every bit of her hurts enough to discourage any sort of focus. Halfway through the hall and she’s taken off everything but an undershirt and her light cotton trousers.

She bets she could try and fry an egg on the metal tiling, and by the time she gets to the engine room, she feels like she’s frying herself. But then a perfect, cold breeze wafts down from the vent in the ceiling and Mara collapses underneath it with a near moan. It’s not enough to really help make a difference, but it feels nice enough that she’s not getting up. 

In her bliss, she doesn’t even notice the turning noise of a ratchet or the quiet humming of a scanner. “Oh good,” Atton Rand’s ever sarcastic voice calls from on top of the hyperdrive. Mara can’t see him, but she can feel his presence. It’s hard not to, and she wonders why. “At least something in this trash can works the way it’s supposed to.”

He had stayed behind today, and she was a little annoyed about that. Bao-Dur was much better at fixing the ship anyways, and she had needed him. His presence calmed her, and she just…

Well, it wasn’t like she had a lot of experience being attracted to anyone. In fact, she’d fought even after she was exiled to uphold the Jedi code and not get attached to anyone. Being scared of the dark side was a good motivator, and it fueled nearly everything she did, until long after her exile. But she liked Atton, and definitely not in the way she liked anyone else on the Ebon Hawk. 

But maybe it was better if he hadn’t came. With Dxun there was a weak part of her she didn’t necessarily want anyone else to see. Still, the question remained as to why he hadn’t tagged along, even when she’d asked. “With you spending so long working on it, I’d expect more than just the air conditioning to work right,” she shoots back good-naturedly. 

He chuckles and then she hears his feet hit the ground a good ways away. He drops the the floor and lays right next to her, sighing deeply when the cold air hits him. “Well, I’m not much of a mechanic, in case you couldn’t guess.”

Mara almost makes a crack about that, too but she stops herself and rolls to her side to face him. Her eyes flit dien, and then right back up, and up some more until they reach the celing, and then they stay there. Because yes, it’s hot, and yes he’s been working, but she still wasn’t prepared. Force, he’s seen her in her underwear but as soon as he doesn’t have a shirt on, that’s when she cracks.

He looks soft, and tired, and absolutely delicious. Wait, did she just think that? Today’s gotten to her, a lot. But wow, that’s definitely a new one. Atton flashes his signature smirk at her. “See something you like?”

Nope. Not this, not right now. she shakes her head and tries to keep her voice and expression even. “You wish. Just wasn’t expecting to see so much, that’s all.” Yeah, she can’t even convince herself. He just laughs at her, and then it’s quiet again. “Why’d you stay here? You’re usually so eager to go with.” Her as stay glued to the ceiling.

"Figured you could use a break from me.“ He sounds almost broken when he says it-it’s easy enough to hear that he doesn’t really feel that way, which is good. She doesn’t think she could stand it if he thought she didn’t want to be around him every second of every day, forever. Because she does. He just makes things better.

"Nothings better than having you around,” she smiles upward, still afraid to look at him and find that her eyes were drawn to more than just his eyes. “Really, though.”

The answer is not what she’d expected, but at the same time, it is. “Old lady ‘suggested’ I stay and work on the ship. She said there was something here you had to find alone. So, did you find it?”

Mara thinks for a minute. What was she supposed to find? Unless it wasn’t on Dxun, and the Force is pushing her towards Atton. She sure as hell hadn’t found any peace. “Maybe,” she says. “I don’t know.” He makes a quick quip on how she’s being a stereotypical cryptic Jedi, but for the most part she ignores it.

And then its quiet again, until he goes fishing in his pocket for a well worn deck of cards and holds on front of her face. “Wanna play Pazaak?”

She nods, and decides then and there to just give in. “Nar Shaddaa rules, maybe?” And he looks like he’s just caught her doing something bad. “We don’t have to if you don’t want to.”

He pretends to think about it for a second. “No, I think that sounds acceptable. Are you ready to lose?”

"Good luck with that, flyboy.“ And all is more or less right, at least here, now on the Ebon Hawk.

**Author's Note:**

> I'm also at goodmorningaperture.tumblr.com


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